This was previously published in the 2026 senior issue.

Thomas Amdur is a member of marching band, Science Olympiad, Academic Team, captain of the Chess Team, treasurer for the Math League, and played keyboard in the pit orchestra for the “Jekyll and Hyde” musical. He plans to attend Carnegie Mellon University to study theoretical mathematics and likely will pursue a career as a math professor.

Stinger: Which teacher do you think has left the biggest impact on you and why?

Amdur: Probably Mrs. Kinzel. I had two classes with her, pre-calc and calc three, and I learned a lot from her. That’s kind of part of the reason that I’m so interested in math now. She also helped me as she was the leader of the Math League. She let me in even when I was in middle school, which was kind of cool. I got to get the experience of being in a high school club early, and I also went on a STEM tour of London with her, which was a one time thing that I did after my freshman year. She was the leader of that group, so it was fun.

Stinger: What’s one quote or message you would share with underclassmen?

Amdur: I would say try to focus on the long term. It’s easy to kind of get bogged down in your work, get stressed out, and think that you’ll never be able to make it out of the rut you’re in, but in the long term things usually work out.

Stinger: What’s your favorite memory?

Amdur: I’ll say Mrs. Kinzel’s class, that was always fun. We got like a bunch of oranges from the lunch room and used ropes to try to cut them, and then squeeze them out to make orange juice.

Stinger: Is there anything else you want people to know about you?

Amdur: I would say that probably the reason that I got into such a good college, and I have good grades is because I’m passionate, and a lot of the time, I like what I’m doing. I like the classes I chose, and I like what I’m studying, so I’m motivated to do good in them. I have that same advice for other people, find something you like doing, and learn a bunch about it.